Eye protector for riders



June 30, 1942. R. R. ROOT 2,288,423

EYE PROTECTOR FOR RIDERS Filed Sept. 30, 1941 .19 16 flux 22L 52.12002 Patented June 30, 1942 EYE PROTECTOR FOR RIDERS Ralph Raymond Root, Kansas City, Kans, assignor of one-half to David W. Gregory, Washington, D. 0.

Application September 30, 1941, Serial No. 413,026

3 Claims.

The invention relates to new and useful improvements in protectors for the eyes of riders to prevent dust and dirt thrown from the hoofs of the horses during racing from injuring the eyes or impairing the vision.

An object of the invention is to provide a protector which is free from metal parts, not easily broken and which fits closely to the face Without annoying the rider.

A further object of the invention is to provide a protector of the above type wherein the front shield for the eyes is curved outwardly away from the eyes to provide ample room for the movement of the lashes without contacting the shield.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a protector of the above type having side shields of flexible transparent material wherein the edge portions of the shields joined to the front shield are curved outwardly to conform to the curvature of the front shield and thus permit side vision therethrough.

These and other objects will in part be obvious and will in part be hereinafter more fully pointed out.

In the drawing which shows a way of illustrating one embodiment of the invention- Figure l is a front view of an eye protector embodying the improvements.

Figure 2 is a top plan View of the same.

Figure 3 is a side view of the protector.

Figure 4 is a section on the line A-A of Figure 1.

Figure 5 is a sectional view on the line B-B of Figure 1.

Figure 6 is a plan view of the blank constituting the front shield, said blank being shaped for binding and forming the protector.

Figure 7 is a plan view of a blank forming the side shields, said blank being shaped ready for binding and forming of the protector.

The protector for the eyes of the rider includes a front shield l which is made from a single piece of flexible transparent material preferably Celluloid. The upper edge portion of the shield is curved, as indicated at 2. The lower edge portion is cut out to conform with the bridge of the nose of the wearer, as indicated at 3. The side edges of the shield are curved outwardly away from the center of the shield, as indicated at 4.

The side shields, one of which is illustrated at 5 in Figure 7, have an outer edge portion thereof curved outwardly, as indicated at 6. The side edges 1, 1 are straight and converge and are preferably joined by an inner curved edge 8. This side shield has an opening 9 therethrough which is shaped to conform to the shaping of the edges of the shield. Italso has a series of openings 10 disposed between this inner opening and the outer edges of the shield. There is also an elongated opening I I adjacent the rear portion of the side shield.

The curving edge portions 4 of the front shield are enclosed within a flexible binding strip I 2 which may be made of any suitable material but preferably of leather. The binding extends from the lower portion of the curved edge to the upper portion thereof and is secured to the shield by stitching I3. There is a binding 12 for each curved edge of the front shield.

The front curved edge 6 of each side shield is enclosed within a flexible binding strip M which is stitched thereto by a line of stitching IS. The bindings l2 and M at each end of the front shield are placed in abutted contact, as shown in the drawing and particularly Figure 5. These edges are secured in abutted relation by cross stitching I6 which extends through one binding strip and then the other. This stitching holds the abutted edges in contact throughout the entire length of the binding strips. Inasmuch as the edge 4 curves outwardly in the opposite direction from the curvature of the edge 6, when joined, these curved edges will cause the front shield to curve outwardly away from the face of the wearer and it will also cause the portion of the side shields adjacent the front shield to curve outwardly, as clearly shown in Figures 1, 2 and 3. After these abutted edges have been joined by stitching, then a flexible binding strip I1 is secured by a line of stitching It to the upper edge 2 and the lower edge 3 of the front shield and to the free edges 1, 1 and 8 of the side shields. This flexible binding strip is also preferably made of leather and may be made in a single piece extending from the point l8, all the way around the protector. The binding strip l1 overlies the ends of the binding strips l2 and I4 and the stitches 18 will pass through the ends of these binding strips. A reinforcing strip 20 is provided at the center of the front shield which is directly over the bridge of the nose of the wearer. This strip 20, as shown in Figure 4, extends from the lower edge 2| of the upper portion of the binding strip I 1 around the lower portion thereof and abuts against the other edge of the upper portion at 22. The line of stitching [8 passes through this reinforcing strip 20 and the lower portion of the binding strip ll. Connected lines of stitching 23 pass through the sides of the reinforcing strip Ed and also the upper and lower portions of the binding strip ll. This firmly joins the binding strips together and reinforces the front shield at the center portion thereof.

A holding tape or cord 24, preferably an elastic tape, extends through the opening II in one side shield and through the opening II in the other side shield and serves as a means for attaching the protector to the head of the wearer.

It Will be noted that the protector is free from all metal parts so that the binding strips may contact with the head of the wearer without causing any irritation whatever. The protector fits very close to the face, the binding strip il contacting with the head of the wearer substantially all the way around. While this provides a substantially closed space within the protector, there are ventilating openings in the side shields, indicated at 9 and Ill which prevents any fogging of the front shield. The curving of the front shield in the region where it is attached'to the side shields spaces the front shield away from the eyes sufiiciently to give ample room for movement of the eye lashes without contact with the shield. This curving of the front shield and the side shield outwardly along the line where they are joined also enables the wearer to glance sidewise through the side shield and thus determine the position of the racing horse at each side without turning his head. The shields are preferably made of Celluloid and are therefore not easily broken, if contacted with by dirt or mud thrown from the hoofs of the racing horses.

It is obvious that minor changes may be made in the details of construction without departing from the spirit of the invention as set forth in the appended claims.

I claim:

1. An eye protector 'for riders, comprising a front shield formed from a single piece of flexible transparent material, and side shields of similar material, a binding for each of the ad- I jacent edges of the front shield and side shields,

stitching connecting said bindings, a binding strip of flexible material extending across the upper and lower edges of the front shield and about the free edges of the side shields, the adjacent edges of the front shield and the side shields being initially curved away from each other so that when joined in abutted relation, the front shield and side shields will be curved outwardly between the upper and lower edge portions of the protector.

2. An eye protector for riders, comprising a front shield formed from a single piece of flexible transparent material, and side shields of similar material, a binding for each of the adjacent edges of the front shield and side shields, stitching connecting said bindings, a binding strip of flexible material extending across the upper and lower edges of the front shield and about the free edges of the side shields, the adjacent edges of the front shield and the side shields being initially curved away from each other so that when joined in abutted relation, the front shield and side shields will be curved outwardly between the upper and lower edge portions of the protector, and a reinforcing strip at the center of the front shield extending from the upper portion of the binding strip around the lower portion of the binding strip and joined to said shield and binding strips by stitching.

3. An eye protector for riders, comprising a front shield formed from a single piece of flexible transparent material, and side shields of similar material, a binding for each of the adjacent edges of the front shield and side shields, stitching connecting said bindings, a binding strip of flexible material extending across the upper and lower edges of the front shield and about the free edges of the side shields, the adjacent edges of the front shield and the side shields being initially curved away from each other so that when joined in abutted relation, the front shield and side shields will be curved outwardly between the upper and lower edge portions of the protector, said side shields having vent openings therethrough.

RALPH RAYMOND ROOT. 

